Month: June 2000

Cliff Floyd hit a pinch-hit solo home run in the bottom of the 10th to give the Marlins an 8-7 victory over the Cubs, sweeping the series, and elevating the Fish to .500 (38 wins, 38 losses). The Marlins jumped to an early 3-0 lead on a Derrek Lee walk with the bases loaded and a Dave Berg 2-RBI single. But the Cubs responded with 5 runs off starter Ryan Dempster, who struggled today, despite striking out 8 in 7 innings. In the Bottom of the 7th, Mark Smith and Derrek Lee each hit 2-run home runs, giving the Marlins a 7-5 lead. But once a gain the Cubs countered, evening the score at 7-7. But in the bottom of the 10th, Floyd homered, giving the Marlins a 3-game sweep of the Cubs.

The Marlins announced that they have signed 17-year-old right-handed pitcher Denny Bautista, one of the top pitching prospects in the Dominican Republic. The 6-4, 170 lb. Bautista is a second cousin to Ramon and Pedro Martinez and participated in off-season w orkouts with Pedro Martinez last winter. Bautista will begin his professional career with the Marlins Gulf Coast League Team, which began play on Monday.

The Florida Marlins return home from their most successful road trip in three years to face National League Central foes Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs during a seven-game homestand. The schedule is highlighted by a special appearance by World Wrestling Federation star The Rock on Friday, June 23. Fans who attend the weekend series against the Cubs will also receive some of the most popular giveaway items of the season, including Kids Batting Helmets on Friday, June 23, Floppy Hats on Saturday, June 24 and Antonio Alfonseca Magnets on Sunday, June 25.

The Marlins Signed 31 year-old Scott Sanders, a righthander, to a Minor League Contract. Sanders was assigned to AAA Calgary. Sanders pitched well for Cleveland’s AAA team but struggled in his only Major League appearance this season. After being released, he signed with Anaheim. Sanders has pitched for the Cubs, Padres, Mariners, and Tigers.

Andy Fox, a left-handed utility infielder and outfielder was acquired from the Arizona Diamondbacks for Danny Bautista. This season, Fox has hit .209 with 1 homerun and 19 RBIs in 31 games, including 10 starts. Fox can play every position but catcher and pitcher. The Marlins also acquired 31 year-old minor league righ-hand pitcher Chuck Smith from the Rangers in exchange for Brant Brown. Smith will start on Tuesday. It will be his Major League Debut. Ironically, Brown was then reaquired by the Cubs, where he is remembered for dropping the final out in the last game of the 1998 season, nearly costing the Cubs the NL Wild Card.

After consulting with architects, construction professionals and consultants to Major League Baseball, the Florida Marlins have concluded that it is not feasible to construct a smaller, 25,000-seat baseball park that would later be expandable to up to 40,000 seats with a retractable roof. On April 4, immediately after Florida Governor Jeb Bush expressed his opposition to the Florida Marlins’ financing plan to build a 40,000-seat baseball park, the team began to explore several alternatives including the possibility of building a new ballpark in stages. Given Chairman John W. Henry’s desire to keep a young, improving team together despite impending player arbitration cases in the coming off season, it is critical that the Marlins pursue a plan that would put them in a ballpark capable of generating competitive revenue streams by Opening Day, 2004.

Struggling starter Vladimir Nunez was optioned to AAA Calgary. Nunez was 0-6 with an 8.35 ERA. Reid Cornelius earned the open spot in the rotation with another strong outing. Mark Smith was activated from the Disabled List to take his roster spot.

The Florida Marlins announced Monday they have selected first baseman Adrian Gonzalez with the first overall selection in the 2000 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. The Marlins have also agreed to terms with Gonzalez. A native of Bonita, California, the 6-2, 195 lb. Gonzalez hit .645 (49×76) with 13 home runs, 12 doubles, 42 runs and 34 RBI for Eastlake High School in Chula Vista, CA this season. Gonzalez, 18, was rated by Baseball America as the best pure hitter in this year’s draft. He was the CIF Player of the Year and the San Diego Union-Tribune’s Player of the Year and had a 3.5 overall GPA at Eastlake.

The Florida Marlins return home Friday to defend baseball’s best Interleague record during an exciting six-game homestand featuring fun giveaways and the first-ever Kids Day on Sunday, June 4. The Marlins, who have a 31-18 all-time record in Interleague play, will face the Toronto Blue Jays on June 2-4 and the Boston Red Sox on June 5-7. On Friday, the first 15,000 fans will receive Collector’s Pin #3, on Saturday the first 10,000 fans will receive a Marlins Rain Poncho and on Sunday the first 7,500 kids will receive a Billy the Marlin Growth Chart.